DOGE Timeline: Government Layoffs, Efficiency and Technology Goals, Target Milestones, Lawsuits and Reality Checks

DOGE, short for the Department of Government Efficiency, was envisioned to cut U.S. regulations and eliminate wasteful government spending.

On paper, Amy Gleason is the acting administrator of DOGE. But DOGE's unofficial leader, Elon Musk, also is CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, X, xAI and more, alleges the group is uncovering billions of dollars in government fraud.

Still, critics claim Musk and President Donald Trump have embarked on an illegal war to downsize the U.S. federal government, and to lay off thousands of federal government employees.

Dig a little deeper, and DOGE's mission includes a mandate to modernize federal technology and software to maximize efficiency and productivity, according to an Executive Order signed by President Donald Trump on his inauguration day in January 2025.

Among the big questions:

• Is it legal for President Trump to launch DOGE from the executive branch of the U.S. government? (Short answer: Perhaps yes, since DOGE represents a rebrand and a refocus of the existing Digital Service organization.)
• Is it legal for DOGE to lay off thousands of federal government employees across numerous government agencies?
• Can entrepreneur Elon Musk avoid conflicts of interest between his personal business efforts, financial investments, and DOGE responsibilities?
• Can DOGE deliver on its lofty cost cutting ambitions?

With those and other variables in mind, here's a timeline tracking Department of Government Efficiency goals, developments, milestones, controversies, lawsuits, hurdles, reality checks and more.

What Is DOGE's Mission? The Department of Government Efficiency Explained

First, some background: During Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy evangelized the DOGE concept -- stating that such an office could lead to a 75% reduction in the federal workforce, a $2 trillion cut to federal spending and the elimination of entire agencies such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, according to National Public Radio.

Raising the stakes even higher, Musk and Ramaswamy said the office should be a temporary endeavor that shuts down on July 4, 2026. 

Ramaswamy foreshadowed the potential strategy in his book, Truths: The Future of America, NPR notes. The three-step strategy, NPR paraphrases, involves:

1. Appoint a czar who is accountable for permanently taming the administrative state.
2. Embed lawyers in every agency to find unconstitutional regulations.
3. Present these findings to the president — who could end regulation through executive order and therefore eliminate jobs and possibly entire agencies, according to NPR's summary.

When Trump's second term as president kicked off in January 2025, he signed an executive order to form DOGE. By early February 2025, the White House said Musk officially serves under Trump as a special government employee, CNN reported. The designation means Musk is not a volunteer but also not a full-time federal employee, the report said. Moreover, Musk will self-police himself on potential conflicts of interest, the White House has said.

DOGE April 2025 Timeline: The Scorecard So Far

Now, here's that timeline tracking DOGE goals, developments, milestones, changes, criticisms, controversies, reality checks, federal government layoffs, lawsuits and more. Check back regularly for updates...

April 11 - Reduced Expectations: Musk said he anticipates DOGE efforts to slash "waste and fraud" from the federal government will cut $150 billion in spending over the next fiscal year, appearing to dramatically lower much-loftier projections he previously touted. (Source: USA Today)

April 11 - Department of Defense (DoD) Layoffs: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has signed a memo directing the termination of $5.1B in wasteful DoD contracts as part of his partnership with DOGE. (Source: SeekingAlpha)

April 10 - Musk Exit Date?: Dozens of House Democrats are demanding President Trump confirm that Musk will leave his role in the administration by May 30. (Source: The Hill)

April 10 - FDIC Engagement: The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has brought on several staffers from DOGE. (Source: Reuters)

April. 9 - DOGE Faces Audit: The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is auditing DOGE, Wired reported. The probe, which has been ongoing since March 2025, covers DOGE’s handling of data at several cabinet-level agencies, the report said. (Source: Wired)

April 8 - Big Brother: The DOGE team is using AI to surveil at least one federal agency’s communications for hostility to President Trump and his agenda. (Source: Reuters).

April 7 - DOGE Regains Data Access:  A divided federal appeals court overturned an injunction that blocked DOGE from accessing Americans' private data at the Treasury and Education departments and the Office of Personnel Management. (Source: Reuters)

April 6 - Social Security Challenges: Office closures, staffing and service cuts, and policy changes at the Social Security Administration (SSA) have caused “complete, utter chaos” and are threatening to send the agency into a “death spiral." (Source: The Guardian)

April 6 - Homeland Security Cuts?: DOGE plans to cut staff at the Department of Homeland Security and agencies under it including the U.S. Secret Service, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Source: CNN)

April 5 - "Hands Off" Protests: Tens of thousands of Hands Off protesters mustered in cities and towns across the country on April 5 to sound off against the Trump administration's cuts to the federal government and its policies. (Source: ABC News)

April 3 - Job Cut Errors: The Department of Health and Human Services made 10,000 job cuts, but roughly 20% of those employees will be rehired, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Source: CBS News)

April 2 - When Will Musk Exit?: Musk will exit DOGE around May 2025, and the White House denied a Politico report that Musk's exit is more imminent. (Source: FOX News)

Continue to next page for DOGE status updates from March 2025 and earlier.